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Ron Brace

Picked-up pieces from 1st quarter review

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Picked-up pieces from 1st quarter review

Brace has been getting some praise this morning. He didn’t jump out initially at me so I’ll have to take a closer look at what he did.

Patriots defensive lineman Ron Brace, who was aligned over right guard Danny Watkins (a 2011 first round pick), got off on a great first step, locked his arms out on Watkins, and rode him laterally down the line before eventually knocking him on his behind. That play was a microcosm of the unique skills and overwhelming strength Brace brings at his size (some 330 pounds), and was very sound technique. The Patriots relied on defensive linemen gaining control of their blockers and being able to engage them towards the action of the football more often in their 3-4 system, but there’s still a place for it in the team’s now four-man front based defense. Just two plays later, Brace collapsed the pocket against Watkins, and bear hugged Eagles quarterback Nick Foles to the ground. The officials ruled that Foles was able to flick the ball out of his hands just in time to prevent a sack. More plays like that from Brace could result in both a spot on the roster and extended playing time.

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Not to get too overhyped on Brace of anything, but he is a thick, thick man.

(via Patriots Training Camp Day 8 – Friday, August 8, 2012)

https://www.patspropaganda.com/not-to-get-too-overhyped-on-brace-of-anything-but/

NFP: Q & A with Patriots Ron Brace

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NFP: Q & A with Patriots Ron Brace

I like what I’m hearing out of Brace in this interview, hopefully he can get healthy and be ready to go when football returns.

It’s been an interesting two years for Brace. Based on his size everyone kind of assumed he was nothing more than Wilfork insurance at nose tackle. But last year, after finally passing his physical (is that what he’s referring to in this interview?) he saw a lot of time entirely at left defensive end.

In fact Brace said it was really the only position that he played in training camp, so it will be interesting to find out if that’s really where he projects or if it was solely due to Ty Warren’s injury.

Brace definitely showed some flashes, the most impressive of which had to be the 4th down goal line stop of Adrian Peterson.

Pryor back, Brace headed to IR for Patriots?

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News came via Ian Rapoport today that pass rush specialist Myron Pryor is set to return tomorrow while it looks like Ron Brace is done for the playoffs with an elbow injury.

Losing Brace does hurt the Pats as depth along the line was already thin, so basically they’re becoming a little stronger in pass rush and a little weaker in run stopping.

If the Patriots face the Ravens in the divisional round they probably could use Brace, since the 3-4 defense will surely be used a lot to stop Ray Rice. Although in the first meeting between the two teams the Patriots went with a Deaderick – Warren – Wilfork front. But we haven’t seen much of Deaderick lately.

The good news is that the return of a healthy and rested Brandon Spikes should be a boost to the 3-4 base.

As for Brace it was an up and down season for him, beginning when he couldn’t pass his physical and stayed on PUP for much of training camp. He showed some signs of life at times, namely the fourth down goal line stop against Adrian Peterson, however the games he played most in were the only two losses this season (@ Jets 67%, @ Browns 71%). 

With the return of Ty Warren, Brace will likely be in a stiff competition with Deaderick in 2011. For now he can worry about getting his elbow healthy.

Did you know Myron Pryor had a 71-yard fumble return for a TD in college?


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Guess who was back at practice today? That’s right, McCourty. Just don’t ask who wasn’t… oh no big deal, just every impact defensive lineman we have except big Vince.

https://www.patspropaganda.com/guess-who-was-back-at-practice-today-thats/

Patriots Defensive Observations

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Some notes and such on the Patriots defense following the re-watch of the Bears game.

– Jarrad Page was out there a lot, over Brandon Meriweather in some cases. Once Devin McCourty was lost half way through the second quarter there was some juggling so it’s hard to say exactly what the depth chart situation is. But it’s clear that the coaches like Page and he’s getting more and more play time every week. He did have a blown coverage and missed tackle in the second half, but pretty much any defender who played a lot in those conditions did as well. 

– Maybe Meriweather just doesn’t play well in the cold? Sounds stupid but his reduction in playing time was definitely notable as he had re-emerged as an every down player as of late. 

– Patrick Chung had more time in the slot but seemed to do a better job than he had in the last few games. He was reacting quick and getting to the ball. He should be back to 100% by the playoffs.

– There were times when the Patriots had 4 safeties on the field. Clearly they need to get healthy at cornerback.

– Early reports via Gresh and Zo were that Devin McCourty wouldn’t miss a game with his rib injury. It looked like the injury happened on the play where he forced the fumble. Didn’t look like a major collision or anything. If it’s anything serious I’d be pretty surprised, would have to be a freak thing in that case, and it sounds like McCourty isn’t the kind of player who suffers freak injuries.

– Ron Brace saw time at nose tackle for the first time this season and looked fast and strong off the ball. He also got some time as an interior rusher next to Vince Wilfork. With Myron Pryor and Mike Wright out Brace got a chance to do some pass rushing, in the past it had been Kyle Love and Gerard Warren doing it so it’s a positive sign that Brace is improving. You can never have too many big strong defensive lineman, and with Brace playing well it really bodes well for the future.

– Kyle Arrington had a very solid game against the Bears, might come down to him or Dan Connolly for the 12th man award.

– As I kind of expected the lack of Brandon Spikes didn’t really mean much for Dane Fletcher. Fletcher has been primarily a passing down linebacker, and it looks like Eric Moore showed enough in his first week to get some looks as the designated pass rusher opposite Tully Banta-Cain in nickel and dime packages. Moore made some good plays, so I expect we’ll see more of him. If he can bring some consistent pass rush it would be a great addition.

– The Patriots lost their top sack player (Mike Wright) and haven’t lost a game. Pretty impressive considering how much people bag on our pass rush. When he/Pryor get back it should give the defense even more of a boost, especially because their legs should be fresh.

– Great day for Gary Guyton. If had been since the opener versus the Bengals when he last made a big play and in this game he made two. Hopefully he can continue to ascend. Given it’s his third year he really should be starting to hit his stride.